Friday, 09 June 2023
Two groups of student food entrepreneurs from the University of Nottingham have scooped the top two prizes at the UK final of a national competition for food innovation.
Taking gold at Ecotrophelia UK was the PlanEat team for their breaded snacking product that has insect protein as a main ingredient. Hey Pesto! took silver with their super seed pesto products that were designed as a versatile product that can be used as a dip, spread, sauces or marinade.
The Nottingham teams beat off competition from five other UK finalists in the 11th edition of the Ecotrophelia UK Competition, which is organised jointly by the Institute of Food Science & Technology and Campden BRI.
Hey Pesto! developed a seed mix pesto that was optimised to be highly nutritious and avoids the allergen issues that pestos with nuts would pose. PlanEat focused on the idea that insects can be used as a more sustainable alternative protein source to conventional meats, and the team worked hard to create snacks in a format that was tasty and convenient, even using a 3D printer to make their own moulds to shape the products in.
Ecotrophelia UK is a ‘Dragons Den’ style competition that challenges teams of UK students to develop an innovative, eco-friendly food and drink product. From idea generation through to the final packaged product, the teams get a hands-on experience of what it takes to bring an eco-friendly food or drink product to market.
Alongside producing the actual product, the team had to devise a business and marketing plan and design the packaging. Experts at the university’s Food Innovation Centre signposted the two student teams to local companies who could support them in developing their product ideas. Nottingham-based Origin Kitchen, which produces plant-based sweet and savoury pots and spreads out of a unit at Southglade Food Park, advised Hey Pesto! And food ingredients, blends and raw materials company, Healy Group, based near Coalville in Leicestershire, helped PlanEat.
Jess Stinton from the PlanEat team and said: “A few days on, and we still can’t quite believe we’ve actually won, and are going to the European Finals in Germany! We took a huge risk using a really novel protein source, but we have been so excited about our product throughout the development process, since the conception of the idea in December 2022. There have been many challenges, both technically and from a consumer acceptance point of view, but we have remained determined to execute a brilliant product, and it’s such a delight to see all that hard work rewarded, and people enjoying tasting insects for the first time! “
Cat Child from Hey Pesto! Added: “We are so happy that all our hard work paid off and we came home with second prize. The competition was so exciting to be part of and it was great to also network with other universities and industry experts! We hope our products will be launched in the future by an industry partner so watch this space!
Each member of the gold-winning team took home a share of £2,000 and an invitation to become an IFST Young Ambassador.
I am incredibly proud of both of the teams who won at this prestigious competition. They have all worked extremely hard and utilised the skills they have learned during their degree to produce tasty and marketable products – congratulations to them all!
Story credits
More information is available from Jane Icke, Media Relations Manager for the Faculty of Science at the University of Nottingham, on jane.icke@nottingham.ac.uk
Notes to editors:
About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 32 in Europe and 16th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings: Europe 2024, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the second most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
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